Forever together
by molepower
Summary: This is an after story of the "together forever" ending. Ib is 19, Mary is 18 an Garry is 23 (he hasn t aged in the other world). Basically Mary and Ib go back to the other world on mistake. Now they need to choose again what to do , and will someone get left behind...
1. Chapter 1

"Loves me, loves me not. Loves me, loves me not. Loves me..." Blue petals were falling on the floor as the little blond girl was skipping forward. "Loves me not. Loves me! Yeeey!" the girl cheered and gave a little jump.

She walked forward in to the black corridor, but to her suprise it wasn´t empty. There was a lump against the wall a little a small distance from her. She stopped there in was new, it wasn´t supposed to happen, she didn´t like it. After a while she started to walk slowly to the lump and realised it was a person. It looked like it was a grown up man, he didn´t move at all, and she started to think he was sleeping or even dead. Suddently the man moved his hand and turned head towards her. His eyes were open. He was very pale and staring right at her. The little girl was so afraid she couldn´t move from the spot as if she was rooted there.

Then the man started to move his lips slowly and said something. The little girl couldn´t hear what he said and just stood there quietly. "m..r..r.." he mumbled. "mu...rr...r.." he said a bit louder. "murder...er..., murderer..., murderer..." he said many times "Murderer, murderer" The little girl was terrified. "Murderer, MURDERER!" he shouted out with an insane look in his eyes. "MURDERED, MURDERER, MURDERER, MUDERER!" He shouted repeatedly. The little blond girl put her hands on her ears and croutched down on her knees. "No,no,no, stop it, stop it, stop it!" She shouted back in panick. "MURDERER!" "sorry.." she wisperd and tears started to fall from her eyes.

At that moment Mary woke up sweaty and terrified. She was breathing very loudly and she was shaking. It took her a little while to understand that she had just seen a nightmare and she was in her own room. In the end she calmed down and put her head on her pillow and looked around her was a very cute room, the walls were light pink, and she had a lot of cute stuff there like rabbit ornaments and a porcelaine tea set with yellow polka dots. on her nightstand there was a little red package with a yellow ribbon tied around. She smiled when she saw it and got up quickly.

When she came to the bathroom, her big sister was allready brushing her teeth. "Mooorning Ib!" Mary singsonged. "Morning" Ib answered tiredly. She was wearing a white top and red pyjama shorts, her semi long brown hair was tied in a loose bun and her red eyes looked tired. Mary was wearing an oversized cow printed tee shirt, her wavy yellowish blond hair was loose and allmost reached down to her waist. She was smiling as she started to brush her teeth and her blue eyes shined. "You seem cheery this morning" Ib said with a little smile. "Of course I am! Todays your birthday, that means were gonna do something fun!" Mary allmost shouted happily. "You´r like a little kid" Ib sighed but smiled immediately afterwards. Mary smiled back at her big sister happily.

Mary, Ib and their parents were sitting at the table eating breakfast. Their father was reading the paper, their mother was buttering some toast and Ib was tiredly but smiling listening to Mary while she was suggesting all kinds of crazy ideas they could do that day. "Honey, would you like to have your presents after breakfast or after we come home from town?" the girls mom asked while munching her toast. But before Ib could answer Mary was allready saying her opinion in a very loud voice. "Lets giv e´m now, lets giv e´m now!" She shouted exited. Ib laughed and said that they could open them after breakfast, Mary cheered to this.

"OK, girls what do you think we should do today? Ib what do you think?" their mother said quickly before Mary could say anything. "I really dont know, lets just do something nice and after that go to a caffee, I want to have some macaroons." Ib said while she poured orange juice into her glass. "Yeeey for cafeeeees!" Mary added. "OK, well lets think of something to do before we go to a cafee" their mom said smiling.

"Look honey. It sais here that the Guertena exhibition is coming to town again!" Their father suddently said. "Do you remember girls? we were there once about ten years ago. Wow time flies doesn´t it!" Their dad said with a little chuckle. "Ooh! It´s coming to town today? But that´s perfect! Lets go see the gallery today, Ib you got you´r intrest to art at that time, didn´t you. Allsow that would be perfect, I mean your starting that art university next fall." their mother said cheerily. "OK, sound good to me what do you think Mary?" Ib asked. "Nooo, not some boring art galleryy come oon!" Mary whined. They decided to go to the art gallery anywhay.

Mary was cross becouse she had been waiting for this day for over a week. She started to sulk and nothing her mom or her dad said made her change. Then Ib decided to cheer her up. "Soo Maary did you get anything for my birthday?" Ib asked totally nonchalant. Mary didn´t say anything for a second but thet a big smile spread on her face. "Wait here!" She said and ran up the stairs to her room. After a while she got back with the little package from her nightstand, andd gave it to Ib. "Thanks!" She said and smiled widely at Mary. In the package was a little stuffed pink bunny, it seemed that Mary had made it herselfe. "Look it has red eyes like you!" Mary pointed out. I looked at the bunny long smiling, then she said "Thanks!" And hugged her little sister.

About an hour later the family was sitting in a car on the way to the gallery. Ib was wearing a white collared shirt that was a git tighter on the waist so it looked pretty feminin. She was allsow wearing dark red capris, black flats and her brown hair was free. Mary was wearing a grass green dress that had a white collar, and the sleeves ended in 3/4 of the arm. She was allsow wearing black flats only they had straps. She had allsow her blond wavy hair free.  
They parked the car near the gallery and started walking to the door, when Mary saw a flower shop right next to the museum, and she ran exited in before anyone could stop her. The rest of the family members followed her sighning. When they got inside the other even got a bit exited. The store was really big and haad alldifferent kind of flowers there, and there was one corner were there was only different colored roses. "I want a rose dad" Can I pleease get one?" Mary said to her dad as sweetly as she could. "Oh fine but lets buy them after being in the gallery, theyl die if we carry around them allday" Everyone agreed, even Mary thought she gave a little sigh.

When they got in the museum Mary wanted to go around right away and she dragged Ib with her. Mary wasn´t really very intrested but Ib looked at every painting and statue for a while quietly. They saw many things (that were in Marys opinion really weird), like for example many painting of women in different colored clothes and they were all called "lady in red", "lady in green", "lady in blue" and so on. They allsow saw the painting called something abyss, Mary didn´t really remember the name, neither did she care, infact she thought of it sceary, it was some kind of big fish in the dark sea. The painting was laying on the floor as if it was the actual sea.

Then after many otfer painting and sculptures they came to a painting called "Forgotten portrait", where a man in with purple hair was slumped to the ground. Ib stared at it longer than she had at the other paintings. For some reason she didn´t really understand she wanted to cry really bad seing that painting, but she dicaded not to. It wouldn´t have been that weird, after all there was many other people crying at the paintings, but that wasn´t the point. She didn´t want to freak out Mary.

"Comoon! Lets go!" Mary moaned. Ib agreed and they went forward, but both of them were a bit uneasy after seeing that painting. Mary felt like she had seen him before, in a dream or something.  
After a while they came to a big painting called "Fabricated world". It was abstract art, like some other paintings at the gallery but at this one Mary really wanted to leave, not just becouse she was bored, but becouse she felt uneasy, and so did Ib. Mary felt the urge to start to talk about something, but she couldn´t get any words from her mouth.

Ib seemed as if she felt a bit sick. "I think I need to sit for a while" she said weakly and walked over to a bench with Mary tailing her in releaf. They started to talk about othar things after a while forgetting the painting. "You know, I´ll be really lonely when you go to uni.." Mary said after a while of talking about the school were Ib was going for next semester. Ib looked at her for a while then said "Well it´s not like we can be together all the time anyway" at that Mary looked really sad. "But you promised, you promised we´d be together forever, remember?" Ib looked at her in suprise "When did i promise that I don´t remember saying that" It was the last time we visited the museum, when we were goint to the cafe I asked you to promise me we´d be together forever, remember?" Mary said sounding like a little kid now. "For gods sake Mary, how on earth would I remember that? Anyway don´t be stupid it´s not like we can be together all the time." Mary got really shocked and hurt by that and got up and ran off. "Wait Mary! I didn´t mean it like that!" She yelled after her and then she sighed loudly.

Suddently the lights started to flicker, and then they went completly out. It wasn´t so dark that Ib couldn´t see but it was kind of creepy. She thought it was just a blackout but when she started to walk to find Mary no one was around. She got scared and started to look for someone but no one was around.

After a while of running around she came back to the painting called "Fabricated world", there was some blue paint or ink running down the wall from behing the painting. Then suddntly there was blue ink on the floor and it said "Come down Ib". She didn´t know what to do so she decided to go downstairs, buit on her way to the stair she passed "Abyss of the deep", and she noticed the barrier thing had gotten out of the way and that you could jump right into it. She hesitated for a while and then said aloud "What the heck" and jumped in.


	2. Chapter 2

It was dark and cold. Ib was sinking deeper and deeper in to the abyss of the deep, and just when she thought this would go on forever she sank to the bottom and the water disappeared. She wasn´t wet at all and she started to think that she probably hit her head at some point.  
Suddently she realized that she was in a corridore, and a few feet away was stairs down.

She got up and started to go down the stairs. It was completely silent and that was very nerv wrecking for Ib, she had no idea what was happening but she didn´t want to stay too long anywhere What if someone or something would attack her, so she thought that if she walked maby she would find a way out of there. She decided to go on till she would find a place where she could sit down and think what the hell was going on.

She came to two doors she tried to open the first one, but of course it was locked. She tried to open the other door, and it opened. Inside there was two round tables. On the other table there was a vase with a red rose, and on the other table there was a black key. She decided to take them both. She put the rose in her shirt pocket on her chest, and she figured that the key would belong to the door that was locked so she didn´t need to put it in her pocket.  
The door opened with the key, no suprise. In that room you could choose between two paths. The other path led up stairs to somewhere light that Ib could not see what there was. The other path led down stairs to somewhere dark, she couldn´t see what there was either, but she felt she´d rather go up. But just as she was going to the path leading up, she saw a golden plate thing in the middle of the two paths. It said:

_"The person who makes it, sells it. The person who buys it never uses it and the person who uses it doesn't know they are. What is it? _

_Go where it belongs unless you want to get in one."_

"Oh great! A riddle" Ib thought irritated. Ib did actually solve riddles as a hobby sometimes, but usually she would look the aswers when se got impatiant. Now there was nowere to look up aswers thought. She thought for a very long time what the aswer would be and then, she got it.

"The person who makes it, sells it. The person who buys it never uses it and the person who uses it doesn't know they are. What is it?" she said it aloud once and then laughed reliefed.

"It's a coffin! Of course! A coffin!" Ib got quite proude of herselfe for solving the riddle, then she looked at the text after the riddle.

"_Go where it belongs unless you want to get in one_..." She read slowly out loud. "This place is scary..."

Ib figured that she should go down because thats where she imaged the coffin would go. So very unhappy with the situation she went deeper down in to the darkness.  
She went on and met other similar puzzle "games" that she had to solve so she could get forward. For example she had to go to a "room of liars" where in the end one of the painting was killed. She had to find codes and keys to different doors to get through allsow she met many of the paintings that she had seen in the exhibition.  
After a while running from "the ladie in red" and some mannequins Ib had found a corridor that had full light and there was nothing to attack her suddently she sat down and tried to catch her breath. When she had sat for a while she decided to move on.  
After walking a few steps down the corridor, she realised there was something in the end of the corridor. It was something small and she couldn't see what it was so she walked closer and realizer it was a dried out rose with no petals.

She had allready realized how her own rose was connected with her body and allways when she got a cut, a petal of her rose would fall of and when she put it in a vase it would heal right a way just like her wounds. She wondered what had happened to the owner of the rose, if he or she had died...  
Without really further thinking she picked up the rose and took it with her. If she would find a vase she would put the dried rose in there and hope for the best.  
After a while and a few more chasing mannequins Ib finally found a vase. She was stupid and put the dried out rose in the vase thought she was injured her self, she forgot it because of the exitement. She waited a while very tense. After a while of nothing happening her smile slowly disapeared and she understood it was too late.  
She slumped down to the ground, partly of the disappointment, partly of her injuries. She didn't understand why she got so sad and suddently tears started falling out. She was so sure. Sure that it would work. Sure that she saved someones life. First she started to sob quietly and the more loud. She covered her face with her hands.

It was so rose was the light, the light out of this place. And now her last rey of hopehad gone out. What she had not realised when she covered her eyes was that the rose had slowly started to heal, and now a few petals had started to grow on it. Now the flower had grown ten beautiful blue petals.

Ib didn't look at the flower, she didn't want to the dead rose. She just curledd up against the table were the vase was and with tears falling out of her eyes she fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

"Ib! Ib! Wake up?" Ib was clenching her hand in to a fist. "Oh my god! Thank god your OK, I thought I lost you for a minute" A soft voice was speaking. It sounded like a man. "Oh, my jacket? Thank you for returning it, that's very nice. Oh and Ib. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. You have been very brave. Probably more brave than me... And I'm the adult" soft chuckle. "I'm seeing a dream" Ib thought in her head "But don't worry! I might seem like a coward but if I must I will protect you with my life... Oh what am I saying, frightning a kid with my nonsense. Don't worry! We'll both get out of here, I promise" The man chuckles softly, in a way that you feel like there isn't a worry in the world.

Ib opened her eyes and saw that she was not next to table with the vase, but she was laying on the floor in a small room behind some bookcase. She was wearing a big unfamiliar coat. The collar sleeves and bottom of the long purple coat were ragged. "Why am I wearing a homeless guys jacket..?" Ib thought in her mind while getting up on her feet.  
Suddently she has a familiar feeling about the jacket. She's worn it before. But how is that possible? No, that must be wrong. She decided to stop thinking about it and walked past the bookcase to the door.

On the other side of the bookcase there was a man, a tall man with purple hair. He was wearing a tanktop and trousers. Ib stopped and stared at him for a moment. He didn't notice Ib at first at first because he was browsing the books in the bookcase. Then suddently he turned his head towards Ib and his eyes brightened up.  
"Oh, you'v woken up! Great, I got a bit worried at first but you seem fine now." He was smiling right at Ib. He had kind blue eyes. Ib would have felt reliefed if she wouldn't have been so confused about the situation.

"What happened, I mean how am I here..?" Ib asked a bit ruffled. "Oh, of course! Sorry didn't even think about that. I found you sleeping in one of the hallways. So I carried you here. Oh by the way you seemed injured so I put your rose in to the vase, you know the thing about the roses right? The way their connected to our bodies." He continued to speak in a soft voice. Ib nodded slowly. "I didn't know there was anyone else but me here.." Ib said after a while of thinking. "You came here too by the guertena exhibition, yes?" Ib asked the man. "Yes, I remember being at an exhibition... How long have you been here?" The man asked scratching his head. "I'm not sure.. It cant be more than 24 hours.. I think.. This place really messes with your head, I really dont know how long i'v been here" Ib said trying to stay calm.

Ib and the man talked for a while about what they knew abou the place. Ib started to feel calmer and calmer talking to the purple haired man. "Oh! I'v totally forgot to ask, what is your name?" He asked Ib suddently. "Oh um, my name is Ib" She answered. "I see, thats an unusual name. But I think it's very beautiful." He said and smiled at her in a very care free way. Ib blushed, and to avoid saying anything stupid she asked him: "Umm, so whats your name?"  
He opened his mouth to answer the question but then he left his mouth hanging open for a while. Then when he realised how he probably looked he shut it quickly. "Umm, well I can't seem to remember... my name.. That's weird..." He said looking at the groung confused. "You don't remember your name? But I remember my name.. Shouldn't you remember yours?" Ib said a bit hesitating, not wanting to say anything stupid. "No, I can't... All I can remember is... I was with a little girl... we were both lost and there was a lot of danger, but... I can remember her laugh and her cry... Then.. everythings black." He had a blank look in his eyes.  
Ib wondered weather she dared to say anything. She decided she didn't dare. The man sat staring at nothing forever till suddently he shook his head and looked at Ib. "Oh sorry, didn't mean to faze out! Now, if your feeling better, we'd beter get a move on" He said and got up from the floor, then he streched out his hand to Ib, who took it and stood up too.

He was heading to the door when Ib poked his shoulder. "Uh, here, this is yours right, thanks for loaning it" Ib said and gave the ragged jacket to him. "Oh my jacket, thanks for returning it" He said with a smile. While he was putting on the jacket Ib asked: "Hey, what should I call you?" He lifted his eyebrows and looked at her "Hmm?" "Umm, well you don't remember your name, so what should I call you?" He looked at her for a while the with a smile said "You can come up whit a name for me!" Ib got suprised by that "What! Me?" "Of course, who else?" He said laughing. "But I dont know what to call you, i'v never named anyone before!" Ib said paniking a bit. "Haha, take your time" He said laughing a bit. "Well, let's get going then" The man held out his hand for Ib, who looked at it for a few seconds but took it then smilig. Then they went down to one of the dark hallways, but now Ib wasn't scared becouse sha wasn't alone.


End file.
